Loom-picker.



J NOHTHROP.

LOOM PICKER.

APPLICATION FILED 1AN.'B I9 !6.

Patented .00 5. 23,1 17.

mgiw.

Unrrnn sia'rns PATENT ome v JONAS NORTHROP, 0F HOPEDALE, MASSACHUSETTS,ASSIGNOR TO HdPEDAL-E MANIT- FAQTUBING COMPANY, OF MILFORD,MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSA- GHUSETTS.

Loom-Molina,

, Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented 0015.23, 1917.

Application filed January 8', 1916. Serial No. 70,937.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JONAS NORTHROP, a citizen of the United States,residing at Hopedale', in the county of Worcester and State ofMassachusetts, have invented-centain new and useful. Improvements inLoom- Pickers and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,and exact description of the invention, such as will enable othersskilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The present invention relates to an improvement in loom pickers.

In converting old, plain looms, during the Operation of which weftreplenishment is effected by the operator, into automatic, weftreplenishing looms, it is usually necessary, among other alterations, toenlarge the aperture in the shuttle race, in which the picker-staffoscillates, in order that the ejected bobbin may fall therethrough.

The enlargement of the picker-staififsl for the passage of the ejectedbobbin n that type of looms in which the picker-st fl is pivoted on therock shaft sustaining the lay swords, allows the picker, which isloosely engaged by the picker staff, tofall below the shuttle race andthereby be out of position to engage the shuttle. Hitherto, no simpleand efiicient device has been pro-, duced permitting this particulartype of plain loom to be converted into an automatic loom without firstradically altering the shuttle box and associated parts.

The object of the present invention is, therefore, the production ofadevice by means of which plain looms of the pivoted picker-staff typemay be converted into automatic looms with a minimum requirement ofalterations in the shuttle box and its asso- To the accomplishment ,ofthis object, the invention consists of the I improved loom pickerdescribed in the fol lowing specification and particularly pointed outin the appended claims. 1

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the preferred form of thepresent invention, Figure 1 is a front elevation of the left-hand 'end'of aloom showing the parts necessary to a disclosureof the invention;Fig. 2 is a plan of the parts shown in Fig.

-1, and Figs. 3 and 4Qare sectional views respectively, on the-lines 3-3and 4- of The loom to which the improved piclger is applied may be, ingeneral, of any usual construction. In the particular type of 100millustrated in the drawings, the pickerstafi, which is indicated at 5,is pivoted at 6 on a rock shaft 7 journaled in. the usual manner in theloom frame 8. Thepivotal mounting of the pickeresta'if on the rock shaftmakes necessary a loose connection between the picker and thepicker-staff in order that the usual longitudinal movement may beimparted to the picker at each actuation of the picker-stafl.Accordingly, the picker, which is indicated at 9, is provided with ahole which is large enough for the free accommodation of the upper endof the picker-staff, so that, as the picker-stafl'.

oscillates on its pivot, the picker may reciprocate longitudinally onthe shuttle race 10. The shuttle race 10 forms the upper surface of thelay 11, which is supported by the lay sword 12 mounted on the rock shaft7. To permit the upper end of the pickerstaff to oscillate tocommunicate a reciprocatorymotion to the picker, that part of theshuttle race-located above thepicker-stafi' is provided with alongitudinally disposed slot 14. This picker-staif slotis but slightlywider than the picker-stafii3 consequently, the picker,which isconsiderably wider than the picker-stafi",has sufficient bearing surfaceon the shuttle race adjacent the picker-'stafi' slot so that it mayslide over vthe slot and properly pick the, shuttle.

if it is desired to convert theplain loom into an automaticloom, it isnecessary to enlarge that portion 15 of the picker-staff slot situatedbelow the bobbin wheng the shuttle is boxed. This portion 15 of thepickerstafi' slot is that part through which the bobbin passes when itis ejected from the picker, as originally 'made, is not Wide enough toprevent its dropping'throughthe enlarged slot. Now it is obvious that ifa .new picker were made of such width as to prevent its falling throughthe enlarged portion of the picker-staff slot, it would be the picker,as origina allow it to perform its shuttle picking function properlyandyat the same time, keep the other parts of the shuttle boxsubstantially-unaltered In accordance with this proposition,. theinvention contemplates interposing a plate; like device of low frictionmaterial between the picker and the shuttle race. Although the'inventionis not restricted to the use of fore, interpose any particular materialfor the purpose, experiment has demonstrated that rawhide answers therequirements of the situation more satisfactorily than other materials.A thin plate-like strip .of rawhide 16 is, therebetween the'picker 9 andthe shuttle race 10. The rawhidepicker plate 16 is oblong in outline, asshown in Fig. 2, is provided with an aperture for the reception of theupper end of the picker-staff, is of the same length as the picker, andis of sufficient Width to enable it to pass over the enlarged portion 15of the picker-staff slot 14 Without liability of the picker beingprojected therethrough Inasmuch as the inner wall of the binder,indicated at '17, approaches very closelyvto the picker, as hereinbeforedescribed, it is necessary to cut a recess 18 in the lower inner cornerof the binder contiguous to the shuttle race,,as shown. in Fig. 4., topermit the picker plate 16 to pass freely therethrough. This slightrecessing of the binder is the only alteration necessary to removeimpediments to the recipri'ica't-ion of the picker plate.

.Vhen an old loom of the pivoted pickerstaii' type has been convertedinto an auto loom as a plain loom into an automatic loom.

The picker-plate is comparatively thin, being of just sufficientthickness to properly support the weight of the picker, so that \it isnot necessary to make any alterations in the height of the shuttle box)It is apparent, then, from the foregoing description, that by means ofthe present inven tion a plain loom of the pivoted picker-staff type maybe converted into an automatic loom with a miniinurn requirement ofshuttle box alteration.

Having thus described a preferred form of the invention, what is claimedas new is 1. A loom having, in combination, a lay,

a shuttle race, a shuttle box, a' binder arranged to yieldingly engagethe shuttle as it entersthe shuttle box, avpivoted'pickerstaff, a pickerloosely engaging the pickerstafl', a picker-staff slot in the shuttlerace having an enlarged portion of greater width than the picker for thepassage therethrough of an ejected bobbin, and a low friction plate ofgreater width than the enlarged portion of the slot interposed betweenthe picker and the shuttle race 2. A loom having, in combination, a lay,a shuttle race, a shuttle box, a pivoted picker-strait, a picker looselyengaging the picker-staff, a binder having an inside wall closelyadjacent to'one side of the path of travel of the picker for yieldinglyengaging the shuttle as it enters the shuttle box, a I

picker-staff slot having an enlarged portion of greater width than thepicker, a plate of greater width than the enlarged portion of theslotinterposed between the picker and the shuttle race, and a recessformed in the inner wall of the binder for the free passage of the partof the plateextending laterally beyond the picker.

JONAS NORTHROP.

